Redwing Herb Farm

July heat, July blooms, July abundance 🌸

Ft. sweet friends Anise hyssop and Monarda 🩷🐝

Spot the farmer 👀

Revelling in Wood Betony, one of our favourite perennials to grow and harvest. A beautiful ally for some gentle grounding. What's striking your eye or bringing you back to earth lately? 💓

Happy almost-Solstice from the Lavender and Motherwort patch 💜🩷 Thank you to everyone who picked up some herbs during our fundraiser - your contribution has been sent to the PCRF today. If you missed it, you can check out their website or other avenues like 🌿

Thanks again, and stay cool this week! ✊️🇵🇸

We've been heartbroken and enraged from the genocide unfolding over the past 8 months. In a solidarity action 40% of our herb sales for the next week will go to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund. If you don't need herbs, we recommend donating to people like them, or to folks at , and calling/emailing your reps, and showing up where you can.

We know that all fights for justice are connected; fights for the land, for Indigenous sovereignty, for migrant rights, worker rights, q***r rights, and, and. This is not separate from our work as settler farmers and as herbalists who dream of deeper healing for all.

Orders put in this week will go out after next weekend (June 8/9). Thanks friends 💚🇵🇸

Planting days👍✌️🌞🌿

Happy planting weekend from us and our veritable field of Peppermint 🌞

We use ground cover around our mint patch (containing three varieties: Peppermint, Spearmint, and Mountain Mint) to keep it somewhat under control, but it's ultimately a bit futile to attempt to reign in these guys. Plant your mint in a pot or be prepared for it to spread 🌿

If you're out today, a cooled Peppermint lemonade might be just the thing to beat the post-gardening heat: a cuppa tea mixed with a spoonful of honey and a generous addition of lemon juice, chilled and/or with ice 🧊 Any other favourite gardening drinks out there?

Cooking with nettles 🌱

That's right, this stinging friend can be enjoyed fresh! If you blanch the leaves to stop the sting and give them a puree, you can make a delightfully green tinged baked goods 🤩

Nettles are a powerful green that are still in a harvestable state in our area. The young shoots will be more tender, but we harvest the tops before they start producing flowers.

Nettles are chock full of iron, other vitamins and minerals, and even protein. They're both a food and a medicine, supporting skin health as an "alterative," working as a diuretic, and useful for allergy support. Nettles can be enjoyed as a food or a tea by those who need some extra nourishment; because they're on the drying side, combining them with demulcent Violet flower and leaf as pictured here can be helpful. Luckily the two are around at the same time!

Energetically, nettles can be fortifying, energizing, or revitalizing, if that's the kind of energy you need a sample of ✊️

Have you ever baked with your spring greens? What should we make next?

That spring green never gets old 🌱

Some Ashwagandha babies soaking up some rays ☀️ We get a few surprised faces from folks who know Ashwagandha but didn't know it could grow here - it does! But as a single-season plant that gets dug in the fall. We still have bags of roots from last October sticking around for those who benefit from their sleep cycle regulation, nourishment, and nervous system/many systems support 💚 Grow on little ones!

✨️Market attendance! ✨️

We're bringing our harvests back to the this weekend! Looking for some tea for the bugs going around? Some salve for the garden season? Some roots to simmer or zines to inspire? We gotchu covered.

Visit us in the barn from 10-2 this Sunday! ✨️🌱

Redwing finally got out to the gardens together to check in with the perennials, fix tarps, and gather up the inevitable lost staples, tools, and miscellany lost to the fields in the fall 😅🤨

We also discovered a friend hanging out in our tool shed. We'll have to leave these old trays be for a while till they want to leave! Swipe to see our new ermine roommate 🥲

Lastly, our future album cover. Hopefully we'll be singing songs of furred friends and new growth soon 🤠

Zines in the wild! 📚🌱

Are you sowing seeds yet? We've got a handful of our herb gardening zines left, covering planning your garden, the needs of herb seeds, profiles on our suggested herbs to start off with, and all the way through to harvesting and drying from your garden. Plus, some pretty cute illustrations 🐝

Find 'em for 10 bucks a pop! And happy growing, whether for yourself, your roomies, or your neighbours (including the non-human) 💚
🌱

Dreaming of summer fields and the first Chamomile harvests...🌼

Our dried Chamomile disappears from our shelves quickly, but you can still find its soothing scent in our Chamomile infused face/body oil. It's become a farm favourite for smoothing a dropperful onto the face at night to repair and moisturize sensitive skins🌙😌

Planning a summer tea garden? You can pop some Chamomile into a sunny place in your garden or a wee pot. Hand picking these blossoms every 3 days or so can become a slow, quiet ritual. We start our Chamomile 6-8 weeks before the last frost, so you've still got a bit of time to pick up some seeds! If you don't wanna wait, we've got these bittersweet blossoms in our Tummy Tender tea, too 💛

🌼

Anyone else basking in the winter's end sunlight?

Ft. Up and At 'Em, our favourite cuppa for when you're looking for that gentle brain/mood boost but don't want the caffeine. These plants work in subtler ways than a shot of espresso, but we like them to lift the spirits in the morning or during an afternoon slump. Also one our tastiest blends with spicy-bubblegummy Tulsi and charmingly sweet Anise Hyssop 🌠

Market day announcement! 📢

We're haulin' our herbs down to the this Sunday the 25th! After you grab your groceries, or a snack, or another delightful local creation, pop by to (re)stock your tea, salves, and dry herbs. See you in the barn from 10-2! ✨️

Tending the heart 🌸

We grow a couple Rose bushes in our garden, slowly watching them mature and open more blooms every year. While they're too small to share with others for now, it's still a day where we can't avoid celebrating them!

Roses are a wonderful, gentle ally for the heart. Emotionally, many find them comforting - good not just to spread love, but also as a support for heartbreak. Rose helps us both open our hearts and safeguard them. They help us to see beauty, in the world and in ourselves, when we need to be reminded.

Rose petals are also a cooling, slightly astringent herb that shows up in skin care to reduce inflammation and bring on repair.

We hope you have some moments to tend to your hearts, your loved ones, or your love for the world today 💐

Happy February! As the days begin to lengthen and sometimes, like today, the sun visits for longer, we know there are still a few weeks of winter left.

So, we're hosting a *s a l e* on all of our dried herbs to help see you through the rest of the season ☀️

Single herbs are 20 percent off from today till next Sunday, February 11.

Visit the 🔗 in bio to check it out 💚

💫 Local herb Q&A 💫

We get a few questions commonly asked when people are looking at our herbs - so we thought we'd answer a few here!

We love these questions because they often come from people who haven't tried many local herbs, or even herbal teas, before - but are curious when they see us mixed in with our other wonderful local growers.

🪻What do you *do* with herbs?
All of our single herbs can be used to simply make your own herbal, medicinal tea - either taken on their own, or in a blend. Making an herbal tea involves steeping a teaspoon or so of dried herb per cup of water for 10-15 minutes. If the herb is a root, we recommend a low simmer in water on the stovetop for 20 minutes instead. But crafty folks may also be interested in using them to make their own infused oils, salves, tinctures, or herbal vinegars!

🌹What are they for?!
While an herb's story can't be summed up efficiently - and the plants are so much more than what they do for *us* - we do have brief descriptions of qualities and common usages for each herb on their page in our shop. We also have a list of further reading on our resources page for those who want to dig deeper.

🪻How do you dry your herbs?
Immediately after they're picked, our herbs are dried in a warm, dark, pest-free space with the aid of a small dehumidifier. They typically take between 3 and 9 days to dry, depending on the plant's water content. We then process them by hand at our hand-made garbling station to break down leaves smaller pieces, and bag them up!

🌹How long will they maintain their quality?
Our herbs are dried efficiently, and get to you mere weeks or months after being picked. With this high quality to start with, we find they stay fresh (look, smell, and taste vibrant) for at least 1 year, or longer. The key to maintaining quality once you get them home is proper storage: out of the light, and in a sealed container like a jar.

In short, locally grown herbs are fresh, vibrant, and hand tended and harvested with appreciation and attention 💓

Stay tuned for a weekend announcement about our 2023 herbs...🧐✨️

Anyone else dreaming of warm, hazy summer light? Thumbing colourful seed catalogues at breakfast? Browsing through summer photos? Us neither 🥲

Pictured: one of our favourite native plants for beauty, bird food (as seed!), bouquets, and medicine (a lovely bitter nervine and relaxant for anxious, type A folks!). Blue Vervain is happily mulched in to the wetter parts of the garden. It's a medicine we currently only grow for ourselves and the birds, and maybe you'd want to too?

Nourishment for you, your loved ones, and co-conspirators 💫 up in the shop.

Winter is an especially good time to lean into our most nourishing foods - broths, soups, stews, root veg, pungent alliums. We like to fill our cups with herbs that are grounding, uplifting, warming, and nourishing, too.

Milky Oat seed falls into the latter category. Green and mineral rich, we include them in blends to offer deep support to feelings of burnout and depletion. These sweet seeds are gentle enough to take daily, and best taken long term ❄️

We recommend giving Oats a gentle simmer in water, but you can also add to teas and make sure to give it a nice long (15+ minutes) steep. In our opinion, it's best combined with your favourite tasting herbs and other nervous systems allies like Chamomile, Rose, Lemon Balm, or Tulsi 💫

Happy new year! ✨️❄️✨️

And, if you celebrate, happy big mug o' tea season!Though we've passed the solstice, the land continues to rest, and we savour last season's harvests until the next round begins. For a drizzly day, here's Elderflower - a special, short bloomer, preserved so it can unfurl as tiny stars in winter cups. A gentle herb to relax us, ease fevers, and help us through colds, congestions, and other bugs. A tea-season staple in our minds! Pictured in the second slide with a few friends to compliment it 🍵

There's a few more days to pick up some herbs before the holiday break! A reminder that all of our products - oils, teas, salves, steams, and more - are 20% off till December 21st 💫

Thank you to all who are taking plants home and supporting your local herb growers! And thanks to Calendula for being such a treat for the eyes and spirits in chilly December. Find them in an assortment of oils, teas, and salves ✨️

✨️A wintery sale!✨️

With our in-person markets wrapped up for the year, we wanted to make it a bit easier to pick up some herbal support for the winter. So, we're doing our first ever sale!

From now till end of day on the winter Solstice (December 21st), our herbal products are 20% off in our shop. That includes:

🤲 salves
🌿 oils
🍵 teas
🔥 smoke blends
and zines 📚

Check out some locally grown teas for cold and flu season, plant infused skincare, rubs for those aches and pains, and more, all made by our hands for you and yours. Locals (in Kingston/Katarokwi), don't forget that we do local delivery for $2 🏃‍♀️

Getting ready for the this weekend! See you at the Tett Centre (Rehearsal Hall) from 11-4 both Saturday and Sunday ❄️

We have a few new faces in the mix for this weekend, including a handful of these sleep support bundles we're calling Dreams Come True 🌙 A calming and sedative tea, an aromatic herbal oil for a quiet, grounding nighttime massage, and a linen Lavender pouch to tuck under a pillow for more restful aromatics 😌😴

We'll also have our other usual teas, farm grown herbs, salves, and more ✨️ Come say hi and check out a whole lot of other makers!
We also know this is a tough season, and feel we can't speak of herbs for rest & recovery without acknowledging that for some, there has been no chance for rest or comfort for over two long months. A cup of tea also pairs well with emailing and calling up your representatives! ✊️🍵

Pausing for a moment with our Muscle Rub salve while packing up for the ! We'll be bringing our teas, single herbs, salves and other skincare supports to the barn this Sunday from 9-2 ✨️ Along with a secret surprise to help keep you warm! Stop by on Sunday to chat, or to pick up some herbal support for bodies that are working, resting, healing, protesting, and more.

Our Release: Muscle Rub salve is here for supporting your muscle aches, stiffness, and soreness. A moisturizing green balm to rub into tired muscles and joints, this salve is a combination of farm-grown St. John's Wort, Mugwort, and Goldenrod infused into local sunflower oil and set with local beeswax.

🌼 St. John's Wort (or Solstice Wort) offers strong support for both muscle and nerve pain, helping to restore healthy nerve function. The bright red oil may have disappeared into the greens of the other herbs, but Solstice Wort is center stage in this balm, and such a beloved ally.

🌼 Goldenrod is a bit of an unsung hero; they are a warming anti-inflammatory ally with many talents, including relaxing strained or overworked muscles. Mugwort leaf and flower is another ally for sore, tired muscles.

Together these herbs help to relax and ease tension in muscles when rubbed on or massaged in. All salves will also help to soften and hydrate the skin, and all of these herbs are antimicrobials that are beneficial for skin healing! Win/win ✨️ These cute little jars last us a while, and are also easy to take on the road for wherever you may need em.

Herbs for kiddos! ✨️🍵

Did you know there are a lot of herbs that are kid-friendly?

While not every herb is suitable for everyone (and honestly, not every herb tastes good!), there are some that are safe for most people, even little ones, and make a tasty tea, too. We pulled together a few to make a Mini Herbalist bundle for the young plant-curious in your life.

💚 Lemon Balm is a brigthening herb for upset stomaches, and for butterflies in the stomach. Calming and comforting, Lemom Balm takes the edge off of anxiety and restlessness.

💚 Anise Hyssop is a sweet tasting herb that also helps ease digestive upset.

💚 Oatstraw is like a vitamin in a tea, full of minerals that nourish us over time.

An herb starter pack for the child who makes potions with sticks and leaves in the backyard (or just for the adult who wants somewhere to start, too 😉). Try them one at a time or blend them together into a delicious tea. Find these bundles up in our store! 🍵

✨️ Tea time talks: what's a nerve tonic? ✨️

Pictured is a cup of our Heart to Heart tea brewed up for a chilly November day. While we brought these herbs together in a blend meant to ease the nerves and invite us into a more grounded space (for a close chat with a friend, family, or just for yourself) - there's a lot more to each of the herbs in it ✨️

"Nerve tonic" often refers to the ability of an herb to regulate or nourish our nervous system when taken regularly for a period of time (generally weeks to months). They are not powerhouse herbs for instant energy, but have a more subtle effect of helping us feel more regulated. We may feel more able to respond and recover from stress when we get to know these herbs for a while. If this "tonic" category sounds a bit too vague, that's okay - getting to know plants one-on-one and how they feel in your body is the best way to understand them.

In this blend we've got:

🌱 Wood Betony (pictured in slide 2): a nerve tonic that is particularly helpful for those who frequently feel stuck in their head and want a gentle push to get in touch with their body and gut feelings. Also a mildly bitter and astringent herb that helps to promote digestive health. You might say we're on a mission to Bring Back Betony - every year we plant a bit more of this lovely, gentle herb that briefly fell out of popularity but remains relevant for many of us 💜

🌱 Lemon Balm: an herb to lighten the heart and ease anxiety and jitters. A brightening herb to invite in during the darker months to ease seasonal sadness. (One caution to note: Lemon Balm isn't recommended for those with hypothyroidism!).

🌱 Oatstraw: another nerve tonic, rich in nourishing minerals. When taken as a daily tea, Oatstraw is helpful for when our nerves feel frayed and reactive.

🌱 and Violet, or Heartsease: a tiny flower to help cool down anxiety and other "hot" feelings, nourish us, and bring a bit of cooling demulcency (moistening quality) to the blend.

We recommend a couple generous pinches per cup and a bit of honey. We also offer most of these herbs on their own for getting to know them one by one ✨️

The last farm day + the last root!

It isn't without a few sighs of relief that we close up the gardens for the year! While we'll miss walking the beds, touching and smelling the plants, and chilling with the bees and birds, like all farmers right about now we're ready to say goodbye till next year. Grateful for access to this land, and for being able to take a rest when it does.

2nd photo is of the final Burdock plant we pulled this fall 🙌 Not just a common w**d, these hefty taproots are rich in inulin, a prebiotic starch that feeds those healthy gut biota. Their mildly bitter flavour also supports our gut by stimulating digestion. These earthy, nourishing roots can help our bodies handle the heavier foods of winter. (But if you tend to be on the cold side, warm up your Burdock teas with things like Ginger, Cinnamon, Tulsi, or Cardamom).

Looking for some roots, or leaves, or flowers for your fall brews? Find us in a couple weeks back at the Memorial Centre Farmers Market on November 19th *in the barn* 💫 Or online in our store!

**ds

🌿 Herbs for the nerves 🌿

Local friends can catch us at the this weekend from 9-2 with some newly bagged single herbs! Pictured are a few of our favourites for soothing anxiety and keeping our wits about us in times that demand our attention. Ask us about how they can also support the immune system in cold/flu/covid season!

We'll also be slinging
💙 Teas
✨️ Salves
💙 Herb infused oils
✨️ Smoke blends
💙 Herbal steam mixes

Hope to see you there!

✨️Name a more iconic duo?✨️

New tea drop! Good Night is a blend of two of our favourite herbs for easing anxiety and bringing in the restfulness.

While we usually go for more complex blends, with this mix we kept it simple: just a couple plants that we feel get along well 💙

Dear Skullcap is a gentle sedative that also eases muscle tension and pain. Scutellaria lateriflora has traditionally been used when anxiety, restless thoughts, and shoulder/neck tension are present. They are also nourishing to the nervous system, meaning that they can be more helpful when taken long term and can fortify us in times of chronic stress.

Lavender is a sweetie that can ease acute anxiety and help relax our bodies into sleep. Their aromatics (i.e. that familiar smell!) relax mental tension and can be helpful for taking the edge off of a headache, too.

Together, these plants can be a bedtime ritual to support sleep, but can also be enjoyed during the daytime to create a moment to unwind.

Taste-wise, this blend is on the savoury side! Enjoy with or without a spoon of honey. Find some bags up in our shop now ✨️